Baba says, “A crow has a natural premonitive instinct regarding storms. An owl and to some extent a dog can sense beforehand the possible occurrence of an earthquake or some other unforeseen natural calamity of great magnitude. Such power of apprehending phenomenal vibrations exists not in ten or twenty but in innumerable species of birds. Such a power is indeed of paramount necessity in their rigorous struggle for survival. Such a power did exist, too, to some extent, among the prehistoric people. But today, in this age of so-called civilization, human beings, having become extremely ease-loving, have lost that power through misuse and lack of necessity; just as their tails, their ability to move their ears and their capacity to hold things with their feet have disappeared. Now the hairiness of their bodies and the strength of their teeth and nails are also becoming extinct. The greater the pre-occupation of creatures with the struggle for existence, the necessarily greater must be their power of premonition or prescience of impending danger, or else their existence will be effaced from the surface of the earth — this is the law of nature.” (Subhasita Samgraha – 3)

People often think that animals are lowly & neglected beings but that is not true. As Baba points out above, animals are far more aware about naturally occurring phenomena than human beings. On this point animals are highly instinctual and are always surveying the scene. They can forecast and predict a wide array of storms and natural calamities.

In the above quote Baba indicates how humans also used to have such abilities, but now with the onset of modernity and a comfort-oriented lifestyle, humans have lost this skill. So now modern people are entirely dependent upon science to forecast the weather etc. But as developed as science is, scientists (meteorologists and seismologists) are still totally in the dark about earthquakes. They are unable to predict when and where an earthquake might occur; whereas various animals like dogs and owls have this unique gift.

That’s why when earthquakes strike in their locale, many dogs reportedly start behaving abnormally. They become restless, walk around whimpering, and go in and out of the house constantly. The dogs know about the impending disaster that is about to strike.

In contrast, modern scientists do not have a clue than an earthquake is about to occur. But the dogs know. Those smart people who understand why the dogs are upset are able to help themselves and others also. So in future, we should rely upon animals to guide us about when and where natural disasters will strike. While dogs know about earthquakes, crows know about cyclones. Similarly there are numerous animals that are acutely aware about impending storms and natural disasters.